Tzipi Livni tells Jewish News audience: ‘Thank you – Israelis feel they are not alone’

Former Israeli politician turned protest leader Tzipi Livni has told a JW3 audience in London that the tens of thousands of democracy demonstrators in Israel have been buoyed by similar protests in the UK.

In an evening conversation with James Harding, the former head of BBC News and a past editor of The Times, she described the solidarity as “amazing”, saying: “We in Israel felt that we were not alone.”

Livni, a former minister and opposition leader who set up her own party and almost became prime minister, concluded the evening with a call to come together, saying: “Liberals of the world, unite!”

She was speaking at an event sponsored by Jewish News and organised by Choose Democracy, (Bochrim BaDemocratia), a campaign to mobilise thousands of people across the UK Jewish community “to demonstrate solidarity with Israelis fighting for Israel’s democratic future”.

The veteran politician, who retired in 2019, has made speeches to crowds of up to 300,000 in recent weeks, before an unprecedented general strike brought the country to a halt on Monday, forcing the government to pause its plans.

She told Harding that the issue had originally been about a series of bills designed to strip the judiciary of its power and independence, instead giving new powers over appointments and veto to politicians, who could then “do what they want”.

However, Livni explained to a packed JW3 that it was now more than simply a fight over the role of judges – it was a debate over whether Israel was still a Jewish and democratic state, with equality to all its citizens, without discrimination.

She told the London audience that British Jewish support in recent weeks, including from its representatives, “showed us that we are part of something bigger than just us, bigger even than the State of Israel… This is, we are part of the Jewish people”.

Livni said neither the ultra-Orthodox nor the messianic supporters of a “Greater Israel” wanted equal rights, the former with a view to women and LGBT+ Jews, the latter with a view to Palestinians and Israeli Arabs.

Regarding the Palestinians and the West Bank, she said she felt that the country was being taken down the path to a one-state solution, adding: “If you are for democracy, you will agree not to live in a one-state solution without equal rights.”

Livni said neither the ultra-Orthodox nor the messianic supporters of a “Greater Israel” wanted equal rights, the former with a view to women and LGBT+ Jews, the latter with a view to Palestinians and Israeli Arabs.

“In a way, this coalition represents different interests, but acting against the Supreme Court is the common denominator,” she said. “The declaration of independence, giving equal rights, for them it’s a problem.”

In a lighter moment, she shared how former Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin attended the illicit wedding of her parents the day after independence was declared in 1948, before quoting Begin, just as she did to democracy protesters in Tel Aviv.

“He [Begin] made a speech one day later, just after independence. He was speaking about respecting rights, about the superiority of judges over politicians. He said, ‘justice will rule over its rulers.’ This was the ideology. Land, yes, but also rights.”

Towards the end of the evening, after audience questions, Harding said he was surprised that the quote he would be leaving with was one of Menachem Begin’s, while JW3 boss Raymond Simonson said Livni’s address was “a rallying cry”.